TxDOT Zapata County Rest Stop

LTC 088

White-collared Seedeaters nest in the tall cane along the River, and may be easily viewed. Valley species such as Ringed Kingfisher, Audubonís Oriole, Great Kiskadee, Groove-billed Ani, and Olive Sparrow are common along the River; yet southwestern species such as Varied Bunting, Pyrrhuloxia, and Lesser Goldfinch are present in the scrub that covers the bluffs. In the spring, stand on these bluffs as the rising sun burns the mist off the Rio Grande, then watch kettles of Mississippi Kites drift northward out of Mexico on the morningís first thermals while White-collared Seedeaters twitter in the cane below.